SSD drives may be not easy to get, their prices are starting to be more and more affordable. First for laptops, but also for powerful servers (many constructors added 2,5" hot-swapable HDD chassis to their product list).

SDD drives get very short access time, very high write performance, can be used in any RAID (0, 1, 5, 10 ...), but have a limited capacity.
What would you do with all these possibilities?

Everything I do with current hard drives?

But there is no need for SSD in that case, SCSI could work very well too. What I'm trying to find out is how to get the best of SSD (and not in gaming, where graphic card is more important that HD).
I'm more thinking about 2 RAID 10 arrays (2 * 4 disks) in order to really increase disk bandwidth (RAID 5 is safe, but slow) on a 4 * quadcore CPU, with 8 to 16GB ram. On Linux.
You know, like .... servers?

What could really benefit from SSD? I/O applications, I guess. Could be database but as SSD disks are too expensive for high capacities, this is quite limited. Mail server? Ultra-loaded web server?
What really use I/O?

I have two SSDs. One is in my Sony VGN-SZ650n and the other is my main drive in my desktop. I have had RAIDed WD raptors and they are nothing compare to SSDs, for either read or write. The drives I purchased were Samsung from Newegg.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820147054

The biggest difference is all about which storage technology the SSD employs. If it is MLC based, expect a performace to that of a conventional 7200 RPM drive. Any SSD that uses SLC technology, this is where the performance will blow away any conventional 10K or 15K drive out there.

I use both of mine for the speed and reliable factor. Even though the drives are expensive, they are a must for any user aiming to have top notch performance without a need for capacity.

Is RAID 10 or RAID 5 necessary when working with SSDs? Aren't they supposed to be more reliable than HDDs? I know they wear out too... I just thought they were "smart" enough to tell you when they needed replacing. Backup. Replace. Restore. Done.

That said, anywhere you have high-rate IO and small data would be good for these. I can think of several uses:
Message queues (e.g. MQ Server)
Database sort space (possibly - if it'll fit)
Video processing
Web servers - especially when temp file generation is involved
Transaction processing
ETL
Video stream server
Military aircraft and spacecraft data storage (not susceptible to vibrations and G-forces)

That's just a few that come to mind.

pbrigido you really need to update your profile! I could swear it reads Gateway...Lol this must be the system you had back in 1997? which makes it pretty decent

Gateway 2000
Windows 95
P100 MHZ
1GB Harddrive
16MB RAM
15in CRT
14.4 Kbps Modem

Leave them on the shelf, too much money for negligable performance. (1-8 seconds "faster" than my raptor) Also questionable quality.

I dunno.
About 95% of the feedback I see from people who have bought them has been all negative.......like they read or write very fast, but when they have to do both at the same time, there is an issue which causes long lags and pauses. The makers are quick to respond to all the negative remarks with "call us and we'll help you resolve this issue." That is all well and good, but too many negative response's and so few positive response's indicate to me that something is not completely right yet.

I think they have a long ways to go before I get very exited about them.

That is actually due to the drive itself being a MLC based technology, not SLC. Anyone who has a SLC based SSD drive will not even come close to having a problem like that.

In tests, the SSDs (especially SLC ones), are proven to be much more reliable than any magnetic based storage solution.

Also, in my laptop, I gained an additional 15%-20% extra battery life by swtiching to the SSD. My whole experience with SSDs has been nothing less that pure astonishment, both in speed and reliability.

The facts speak for themself. MLC SSDs = bad (which isn't even too bad considering). SLC SSDs = good. The comments you read were posted by consumers that chose to go the cheap route and purchase a MLC SSD. I can't blame them for not being satisfied. Any user who owns a SLC drive, like myself, cannot and will not be able to find something bad to say about them.

The only reason that they are not mainsteam yet is because of the price and capacity, nothing more.

Although this might sound lame (I have an old 10k 74GB raptor) quietness would be nice for a change. Even the best HDD can't beat the silence of a SDD. Also lets not forgot the good ol speed factor. Naturally it won't make your FPS jump but games packed with loading screens would benefit.